Restaurant Review: Brewed

Attention, bike-friendly Dallas: if North Oak Cliff’s Oddfellows is your single origin cup of choice, then pedal your vintage cruiser bicycle west and consider Brewed. Located in Fort Worth’s Near Southside community, this new gastropub is strikingly similar to the popular Bishop Arts restaurant yet one-ups it across the board. Both share a taste for vintage-chic decor and an advanced coffee program, but Brewed is more serious about its beverage selection. Besides coffee, they serve more than 60 bottled beers, including 12 Texas brews on tap. The restaurant also offers wine on tap; growlers, so you can take one of Brewed’s draft beers home; and specialty drinks blending stouts with espresso shots. Heck, they even offer kombucha on tap. Happily, chef John Kramer’s seasonal menu shares Brewed’s artisanal philosophy, offering a delicious blend of pub favorites with a few Texas twists. A typical queso was turned on its head, replacing Velveeta with tangy goat cheese topped with house-made chili and served in a cast-iron crock. Texas aged cheddar, smoked Gouda, and Parmesan cheeses were blended with a rich béchamel and bacon in Brewed’s mac and cheese. Roasted tomatoes gave the dish a welcome acidic bite. Brewed’s Best BLTB sported Nueske’s bacon, tender butter lettuce, tomatoes, and house-made buratta. It was a creamy and smoky delight. Other standout dishes included a quail and grapefruit salad, mussels steamed with Bombshell Blonde beer, and a beautifully grilled flat-iron steak topped with stout butter. The steak was served with my new obsession: duck fat fries. Tossed with garlic salt and black pepper, Brewed’s fries were addictively luscious, making it all that harder to fit into my cuffed, industrial-denim skinny jeans.